Under the guidance of progressive management triumvirate Niall O'Donnell, Colm Nally and Colin Kelly, Louth took massive strides at U21 level in 2003. In the Leinster championship, the Wee County beat Kildare and rattled defending champions Dublin. The Dubs went on to win the All-Ireland. Messrs. O'Donnell, Nally and Kelly were so encouraged that they decided to stay on for two more years. Gerry Robinson caught up with the first-mentioned to discuss a heartening campaign. Louth U21s got their 2003 Leinster championship off to a sensational start by ousting Kildare (1-15 to 2-7) after extra time in the first round at Ardee's Pairc Mhuire on Sunday March 16th. St Mary's clubman Darren Clarke opened the scoring from a free (after a foul on Michael Foley) in the first minute and the Wee County went on to produce an impressive never-say-die performance. Clarke finished top scorer, with seven points, including the dramatic injury-time score that forced the extra 20 minutes. Following the opener, goalkeeper Daniel Woods had to be at his brilliant best to deny the Lilywhites an immediate three-point response at the other end. Kildare did draw level only for full forward Shane Lennon to restore Louth's lead in the seventh minute. Kildare levelled again; this time David Reid replied for the hosts. Unanswered frees from Clarke in the 18th, 20th and 24th minutes extended Louth's lead to four points, 0-6 to 0-2. The visitors halved the deficit before Lennon's second point. Louth looked certain to take a lead into the break but conceded a soft 29th-minute goal, which left the sides level at half time: Louth 0-7, Kildare 1-4. True to form, Clarke opened the second-half scoring after only three minutes and Reid tagged on another point following wonderful approach play from Mattock clubmate Mark Brennan. Again Kildare fought back to equalise, before Barry Sullivan registered for Louth. The Wee County were then stunned by Kildare's second goal at the end of the third quarter. That score left them trailing by 2-6 to 0-10 with only 15 minutes remaining. Paddy Keenan pointed in the 50th minute but Kildare scored again four minutes later to move two points clear with six minutes to play. Reid landed a free a minute from time and, two minutes into stoppage time, Clarke - playing on his home pitch - dramatically struck the score that sent the match into extra time. This Louth team was extremely well prepared, however, and they pulled away in extra time, registering 1-2 without reply. Another Clarke free was the only score of the first period of extra time and Mark Brennan finally put the issue beyond doubt with a sensational winning goal before substitute James Fagan fisted the winners' final point of the day. Despite playing well and matching their opponents for long periods, Louth's under 21s were exceptionally unlucky to lose their quarter-final against Dublin at the same venue less than a fortnight later (on Saturday, March 29th). The final scoreline of 2-13 to 0-12 was an inaccurate reflection of a game either side could've won. The Wee County matched Tommy Lyons' highly-rated Dublin all the way and could quite easily have progressed to the last four. But for the concession of two soft goals - the same failing that had threatened their blatant superiority against Kildare - they may well have done. In the end, the seven-point margin was extremely flattering to All-Ireland champions-elect Dublin. They were gifted a goal nine minutes into the second half but Louth refused to lie down and trailed by just a single point with ten minutes remaining. It wasn't to be Louth's day, however: Dublin's second goal arrived in the final minute and injury-time points were added with the winning line safely traversed. While it would be an exaggeration to suggest that Louth were the better team, they certainly could have got something from this game had they enjoyed even a slice of luck. While defeat was their lot ultimately, pride had been restored in the Louth U21 jersey and the appointment of the management trio of Niall O'Donnell, Colm Nally and Colin Kelly had been clearly vindicated. It wasn't a major surprise when the management team responded to the County Board's subsequent serenades by agreeing to remain at the helm for two more years. That fact alone suggests that O'Donnell and co. are happy with the way things panned out in '03: "We are happy with the way it went," the big Clans man confirms. "The County Board said they'd like us to stay on for two more years to make it a three-year term and we decided to take them up on that. "We went into the year with nothing to lose as Louth's record at U21 level over the previous ten years - apart from 1996 - left a lot to be desired. We prepared the team as a championship team should be prepared and in fairness to the players they gave us the response we were seeking." Once appointed, O'Donnell, Kelly & Nally got straight down to business: "The first thing we had to do was secure a venue. We contacted Peter Shevlin with a view to using Drumcar and he accommodated us. We're very grateful to Peter for his help. Once we had a training base, it made it possible for us to adopt a professional approach." As it turned out, the management skills of the three former Louth players complemented each other perfectly. "Between the three of us we had different ideas for the team and these were all incorporated into the team's preparations. In fairness to Colm [Nally], he took the training on himself and it was the best training any county team in Louth has received in a number of years. It was varied and enjoyable ... the training was one of the high points of the year. "Of course, there's only so much the management can do and after that it's up to the players. Thankfully, they responded really well. They started training on December 3rd and trained over Christmas and the New Year and right through into March. We couldn't have asked any more from them." A number of challenge games were organised and played - but the Kildare match in mid-March was the real litmus test. Niall reflects: "As far as I'm concerned we gave away 2-4 to Kildare in soft scores and we were lucky to get away with it. But the training stood to us in extra time and we came away with the win. We got out of jail that day. When we sat down the day after the game we made it clear that we'd have to cut out the handling errors and mistakes." Little time was afforded for fine-tuning, though: "We decided to up it for the Dublin game and the lads trained extra hard. We'd been focused on Kildare for three months and now we had two weeks to prepare for Dublin. Due to the extra time and injuries a few lads missed vital training sessions, which was a setback. As it turned out, three of our best players from the previous game didn't perform at all against Dublin and we lost Jamie Carr to injury. That was a blow. Still, all in all, it wasn't a bad performance..." Niall leaves that thought hanging in the crisp Dundalk air. All in all, even though no silverware was garnered, it was a case of Mission Accomplished as Louth had made a definite improvement on previous efforts in the U21 championship. "Our main aim was to prepare the team well and to hopefully assist the senior management. We were there to restore pride in the county jersey and to put our players in the shop window so that senior management could run an eye over them. It was great to see the Louth support there in force for the Kildare game, giving the team a standing ovation ... that was encouraging." Did Dublin's subsequent pummelling of Westmeath give Louth further heart? "It did. That was a very strong Westmeath minor team from 2000 and it showed the progress we had made. We have 17 or 18 of the same players eligible again next year if we get them back and we can add ten or twelve more. Things are looking up. Louth's minors also improved this year and there seems to be a real interest in playing for the county U21s at the moment. You wouldn't believe how many lads have come up to me in town reminding me to bear them in mind when it comes to picking next year's panel." A task which will again fall to what was dubbed the 'Dream Team' management trio upon their appointment late in 2002. How did the 'Dream Team' fall into place? Why did the three former Wee County seniors opt to throw their hats into the ring? "Myself and Colin Kelly graduated from U14 together and have been close friends ever since. And when Colm Nally came into the Louth senior set-up we also became good friends, even though there was obviously a rivalry between us as two goalkeepers. "When we all left the Louth set-up there was a void in our lives and we really missed it. Being with the U21s has got us involved again and it has been a great experience so far. "I had a stint as a selector with the Clans the previous year but was a little apprehensive about the prospect of dealing with this age group between minor and senior. I thought the lads might be cocky and that they might not listen, but they were great. There was a good rapport between management and players and everyone knew what had to be done. We all learned something from it. It has been a learning process for all concerned and hopefully we can improve further next year." So, what is the target for the coming year(s)? "We aim to prepare the team well again and - depending on the draw - hopefully get a bit of a run. If we can gather up a bit of momentum, there's no reason why Louth can't win a Leinster championship at U21 level - especially if the lads gel together and play the football they're capable of. "We need to have 29 or 30 lads on the panel all of equal ability. That was the case last year. We had a strong squad and there were lads on the bench every bit as capable of coming in and doing a job as the lads on the starting team. In fact, the hardest part of the job was deciding who to leave out because they were all very talented and committed. "Everyone rowed in behind us. As well as the players, people like Pat Toner, Paddy McMahon, Charlie McAllister, Tony Reynolds and Benji Conlon gave us great help over the year. If we get the same support again in 2004 we'll be more than happy!" The Louth U21 side that defeated Kildare after extra time in the 2003 Leinster championship was: Daniel Woods; Gary Hoey, Richard Sherlock, Jamie Carr; Eoghan Judge, Chris Mulroy, Niall Carroll; John Doyle, Patrick Keenan (0-1); Barry Sullivan (0-1), Mark Brennan (1-0), David Reid (0-3); Donal McNally, Shane Lennon (0-2), Darren Clarke (0-7). Subs: Mark McGeown, Ciaran Drumm, Emmet Kelleher, Alan McGeogh, Peter Duffy and James Fagan (0-1). Tweet

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